In Antarctica, the crew of the French–Italian Concordia research station are preparing for the winter. They have to survive six months of complete isolation – four in darkness because the Sun never rises above the horizon – while they perform science in one of the most barren places on Earth.

ESA’s fifth automated cargo ferry completed its mission to the International Space Station today when it reentered the atmosphere and burned up safely over an uninhabited area of the southern Pacific Ocean.

]]>d6187797c61a12c08a6c6ffb1e22689dSun, 15 Feb 2015 19:18:00 +0100ATV to bid farewell to Space Station for last time

ESA’s last Automated Transfer Vehicle will leave the International Space Station on Saturday for its final solo voyage, setting course for a fiery demise that will mark the end of its mission and the programme.

Next Monday, ESA astronaut Samantha Christoforetti will float into Europe’s space ferry to install a special infrared camera, set to capture unique interior views of the spacecraft’s break-up on reentry.

Inspired by ESA’s Rosetta mission and the upcoming NASA OSIRIS-Rex mission, Zero Robotics finalists were given the task to simulate imaging a virtual asteroid on the International Space Station last Friday. Secondary-school students from across Europe controlled miniature satellites on the International Space Station in a competition to get the best images.

An unusual package was delivered to a hotel in Beijing, China, in 1987 containing a batch of blue–green algae that would spend five days in space in a capsule. The ESA-led MELiSSA project was on its way.

For his outstanding work during his Blue Dot mission on the International Space Station last year, German President Joachim Gauck awarded ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst the Officer’s Cross of the Federal Republic of Germany today.

Yesterday, ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti and NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore captured the Dragon spacecraft with its supplies and new experiments for the six astronauts living 400 km above our planet.

ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst has spent almost six months on the International Space Station running experiments and maintaining the weightless research outpost with his crewmates. After landing in Kazakhstan, he will become ESA’s first astronaut to return directly to Europe for rehabilitation.

The heads of the International Space Station (ISS) agencies from Canada, Europe, Japan, Russia and the United States met in Paris, France, on Nov. 4, 2014. The following is a joint statement issued by the leaders:

The International Space Station was threatened by space debris last week but ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle saved the day by firing its thrusters to push the orbital outpost and its six occupants out of harm’s way.

Laser surgery to correct eyesight is common practice, but did you know that technology developed for use in space is now commonly used to track the patient’s eye and precisely direct the laser scalpel?

ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst has spent four months in the relative safety of the International Space Station but on Tuesday he will venture into open space with NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman on a seven-hour spacewalk.

ESA’s five ‘cavenauts’ and their instructors are set to explore the caves of Sardinia, Italy, where they will live and work during their six-day stay.

]]>d7f50122afa8dfda8fa0ed62542714dfFri, 12 Sep 2014 17:01:00 +0200VIDEO: Found at sea— How the International space station can save lives on Earth

The International Space Station (ISS) is probably best known for its potential to help us learn more about our terrestrial world and our galaxy through scientific experiments, but Eirikur Johannsson of Norway is one example of how the ISS is helping save lives on earth every day.

European industry has decided to ‘put the pedal to the metal’, by creating the world's largest research consortium in the field of metals research and manufacturing. Media are invited to learn about the new programme in a press conference at London’s Science Museum on 9 September.

In a flawless demonstration of technology and skill, ESA’s fifth and final ATV, Georges Lemaître, docked with the International Space Station today, fixing itself firmly for a six-month resupply and reboost mission.

ESA’s latest Automated Transfer Vehicle is set to dock with the International Space Station on Tuesday, delivering more than six tonnes of crucial supplies and scientific experiments to the orbiting research base.

Looking down from orbit, ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst steered ESA’s Eurobot rover through a series of intricate manoeuvres on the ground yesterday, demonstrating a new space network that could connect astronauts to vehicles on alien worlds.

Following the exciting launch of the 5th Automated Transfer Vehicle, ESA Education is proud to present a series of new educational videos that secondary school teachers will be able to use in their classroom to illustrate curricular physics and chemistry, and link it to space applications.

The fifth and final mission of ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle got off to a flying start today with its launch from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, heading for the International Space Station.

ESA’s fifth Automated Transfer Vehicle is now scheduled for launch to the International Space Station at 23:44 GMT on 29 July (01:44 CEST 30 July) on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst is sharing beautiful photographs from space on his social media pages. Is there something you want to ask him while he is orbiting our planet? On 22 August you could talk to him in person during ESA’s SocialSpace event.

]]>59676eb923ce90d9ff188243feef2709Tue, 22 Jul 2014 18:08:00 +0200Honing skills
Human spaceflight and operations image of the week: mission control team trains for Sentinel-2A launch
]]>003b5bd2165478573a27b5c21a4c770bTue, 03 Mar 2015 15:45:00 +0100Out of this world
Watch a replay of our 'Out of this world' Google hangout between ESA astronaut Tim Peake and pupils from Rode Heath Primary from Cheshire, UK
]]>51ba8c7bb978261af3c90761063f80fcWed, 25 Feb 2015 12:10:00 +0100Final goodbye
Human Spaceflight and Operations image of the week: the International Space Station and the last Automated Transfer Vehicle streaking through the sky over Europe
]]>3ad6daa690308a9b8dc43fb20ef1da16Tue, 17 Feb 2015 16:50:00 +0100ATV-5 mission ends
ESA's fifth and final Automated Transfer Vehicle left the International Space Station and leaves a legacy for future space exploration
]]>292bb1f7a9066f3f5be0742aa622072dFri, 13 Feb 2015 12:15:00 +0100Follow ESA spacecraft
See the ground tracks of ESA spacecraft and satellites on our interactive map, including the final voyage of Europe's Automated Transfer Vehicle
]]>ff63d505c4e482bb1edda4f144bbd889Fri, 13 Feb 2015 11:05:00 +0100Destination: Moon
An eight-minute film of the past, present and future of Moon exploration, from the lunar cataclysm to ESA’s vision of what lunar exploration could be
]]>9da1d30a03e6f98906b592069e7f8998Tue, 20 Jan 2015 11:45:00 +0100Alexander Gerst’s Earth
Watch Earth roll by in sparkling high definition from the perspective of ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst in this six-minute timelapse video from space
]]>38fb6de06f2f9a554ce88c45e5e13a06Mon, 22 Dec 2014 10:30:00 +0100Rollercoaster science
The world’s largest aircraft for weightless research, the ‘Zero-G’ Airbus A300, took its last trip for ESA recently. Click here for the top five results on ESA’s gravity plane
]]>49af1fd565a54671eb952f842f137eceWed, 15 Oct 2014 15:45:00 +0200